Face death with equanimity

"The exam is over. Please put down your pens and stop answering questions. Otherwise, you will be considered violating the exam regulations and will be dealt with seriously..."

The radio buzzed in. Xu Youling paused, then loosened her grip on the gel pen and flipped the test paper over. The white answer sheet was filled with neat, small characters, written with a reassuring seriousness. Looking up, she saw a line of large characters: "Written Exam Preliminary for the Baita Traffic Counselor Qualification Certificate."

Perhaps it was from the time he was bored in the study room reading by lamplight that the world slowly entered winter. The cold wind blew through the half-open gaps in the glass window, the gorgeous chandelier above his head, and Xu Youling's soft hair hanging down.

"Oh, I really want to know the results of the first round of exams soon." The girl sitting behind him was talking to her companion, her tone excited but also nervous. "The second round of exams will definitely go smoothly. After all, there are so many sentinels at home. As long as I practice more counseling with them, I will definitely pass."

"Forget it. If I don't pass the initial test, I won't even have a chance to take the retest," his companion whispered. "Are you confident about the last essay question? I've answered these points..."

Xu Youling listened attentively, reaching out to put away her stationery, tissues, and water cup, then wrapped herself in a large, snow-white scarf. Her narrow, delicate chin was hidden between the folds of the plush fabric, and her eyelids were slightly red from lack of sleep and a slight cold, casting a small, arc-shaped shadow from her eyelashes.

He was very confident that he could pass the initial test, but he didn't know whether he could pass the practical test with the same success, just as he didn't know whether he could successfully complete the task, go home, and leave this frozen and desolate wasteland.

Two months ago, Xu Youling traveled through a book to this world.

He was originally just bathing an over-energetic Samoyed in the pet shop where he worked, but the hand holding the hair dryer suddenly felt numb from the palm of his hand to the back of his head. When he woke up, the world had completely changed.

The people here are divided into sentinels, guides, and ordinary people, and are managed by an organization called the White Tower. The original owner that Xu Youling traveled into was a guide with ordinary talent. Due to his low rank, he was not directly recruited into the White Tower, but instead made a living by doing odd jobs in the city.

But most importantly, upon entering this book, Xu Youling was instilled with this notion: this whistleblower novel doesn't have a happy ending. The protagonist and his surrogate are in a love affair, tormenting the humble, dark-minded cannon fodder. The cannon fodder suddenly turns evil, becoming a raging war machine, seducing others to follow him. Blood splattered across vast distances, leaving the protagonist's body completely emptied, and the world plunged into war.

Xu Youling guessed that his mission was to stop the cannon fodder attacker from turning evil, change the ending, and then he could return home safely.

According to the original novel, the cannon fodder attacker is about to return from the battlefield, battered and bruised. The original owner's limited talent prevents him from directly entering the White Tower. To quickly connect with the cannon fodder attacker, Xu Youling plans to obtain a counselor qualification certificate so that she can attempt to communicate with him during his convalescence.

However, the traffic guide qualification exam is more difficult than expected, especially the practical retest. Every year, candidates are injured or even killed during the exam. For a guide like Xu Youling, who has never properly served as a sentry, taking the exam without preparation is like a blind man touching an elephant. He needs to do more preparation beforehand to take the exam with ease.

Fortunately, Xu Youling should still have some time before the results of the preliminary exam are announced.

As the crowd slowly poured out of the examination room, Xu Youling tugged at her scarf again, barely suppressing the urge to cough. In the distance, amidst the white snow, something was approaching, crushing the dead branches.

-

A buzzing sound. A bloody scream. The feel of a silver blade slicing through skin.

"Pei Zhi! Pei Zhi! Are you okay?"

It was very noisy. My eyes were red. I couldn't see clearly.

"Be quiet, Fang Linshui, he's fine. Go back to the carriage first. It's too cold outside."

"Okay...but his pupils are dilated. Is he really okay?"

"I said it's okay, go back."

The footsteps are approaching.

A young man named Pei Zhi leaned against a snow-covered tree trunk, his dark combat uniform barely concealing the oozing blood. A combat-booted foot crushed the bones of his digits, causing him to groan in pain, his hollow gaze suddenly burning with hatred.

The spiritual German Shepherd whimpered and tried to pounce on the man who hurt his owner, but was ruthlessly grabbed by the scruff of the neck and thrown aside, letting out a pitiful cry of pain.

Yue Changji squatted down in front of Pei Zhi, sneered, and patted his face with the back of his hand: "I'm really curious why Fang Linshui would look at a drowning dog like you with such alms."

Pei Zhi coughed twice, swallowed a mouthful of sweet and fishy blood foam, and said in a hoarse voice: "Get out."

"You told me to get out? You're already like this, and you still tell me to get out?" Yue Changji seemed to find it ridiculous, but suddenly put away his smile and said in a sinister tone, "If you die here like this, I'm afraid no one will care."

Pei Zhi didn't answer, so Yue Changji continued to speak on his own. "It was an urgent mission, with frequent incidents. The team members disobeyed orders and acted on their own. To avoid further losses, the captain acted decisively to preserve the manpower. After completing the mission, he returned to the battlefield, but was unable to find the team members' bodies... How do you think this ending is too polite for you?"

The man leaning against the tree trunk looked like a dead dog, a faint spark of light in his eyes flickering away before turning completely dead. Yue Changji stretched out the tip of his shoe to kick him in the side: "Are you mute? Bastard, I'm talking to you! You—"

The entanglement and gathering of mental power happens in an instant.

As Yue Changji was distracted, he felt a sharp pain on his face, revealing a thin, narrow bloodstain. He raised his eyebrows in surprise and was about to touch it when he paused.

“Swish!”

The man on the ground, clearly at the end of his rope, eyes burning bloodshot, charged at him with a desperate gamble. The short blade sliced ​​through the wind, its surface reflecting Yue Changji's stunned face.

-

The crowd leaving the examination room suddenly commotion, and the line came to a standstill. Xu Youling stood on tiptoe and looked outside. Several examiners who had just been sitting at the podium were standing solemnly under the eaves, talking among themselves.

"Everyone, please be quiet." One of the examiners raised his hand, stopping the growing murmurs. "Please return to the examination room for the time being. The expeditionary force is about to return victorious. Excessively powerful mental energy may damage the mental barriers of the junior guides. I repeat, everyone please return to the examination room for the time being!"

The crowd suddenly turned back in panic, hiding inside the examination room again. Xu Youling was swept away, struggling to get out amidst the surging crowd.

"Please wait a moment!"

The expeditionary force, the most powerful army of the White Tower, the glory of the country, and also the unit where the cannon fodder top and the protagonist top and bottom are located.

Its fame spread not only within the military but also among ordinary people, exerting an unexpected deterrent effect. The expeditionary force consisted of the finest sentinels and guides, fortifying and clearing the land wherever they went, advancing fearlessly.

Xu Youling didn't know why the expeditionary force had suddenly returned at this moment. His own mental barrier was clearly far from sufficient to withstand a severely injured top-tier Sentinel. However, the expeditionary force would recuperate for a long time after their triumphant return. If he simply returned to the examination hall, he might not see the cannon fodder attacker again anytime soon.

"What are you doing? Go back quickly!"

Seeing a thin and pretty junior guide struggling to push through the crowd and run towards the gate, the examiner couldn't help but look surprised: "Back off!"

The examiner's harsh rebuke was drowned out by the wind and snow. In the distance, several advance troops' armored vehicles were coming over the snow, and the snow foam was splashed by the tracks, almost producing cold smoke.

Xu Youling took a deep breath, as if an invisible hand was grabbing his throat or pushing his back hard, forcing him to surrender, become confused, and fall into the deep sea of ​​​​spirituality.

He braced himself on his knees, trying to raise his head to watch the armored vehicle approach. The examiners were already paying no attention to him, as a young sentry was being carried down from the armored vehicle. His eyes were red, his voice was hoarse, and he was tied to a stretcher with restraints, frantically tearing at his combat uniform, which was now stained with blood.

It was Pei Zhi.

Xu Youling recognized that the disheveled sentry was none other than the evil villain who would destroy the White Tower in the future, Pei Zhi, who had crawled out of the mud and allowed others to trample on him, leaving behind a trail of evil deeds.

He involuntarily took a few steps back, holding onto the wall to maintain his balance. No, not now, not here, should be after he passed the qualification exam, then in the safe convalescent area...

"careful!"

The soldiers cried out in panic. With a thud, Pei Zhi fell to the ground on the stretcher, his internal organs shaking and nearly stopping his breath. The German Shepherd spirit let out a desperate neigh, frantically clearing the area for its master, biting back the surrounding soldiers.

Pei Zhi curled up in the cold snow, where the stretcher had overturned, his body arched in pain. He had already used brute force to break free of most of the restraints, and his red eyes, like snakes, scanned the faces of everyone present.

Xu Youling's vision darkened, his fingertips digging into the wall as his entire body went limp uncontrollably. The overwhelming pressure from the top-tier Sentinel was overwhelming, and his mental barrier was like thin ice on a lake in early winter, enduring each blow from Pei Zhi's hammer.

"Well!"

In the next moment, Pei Zhi suddenly stopped, his eyes fixed on the junior guide who was leaning against the wall at the edge of the crowd, his face as pale as paper.

It was as if his heart was suddenly tightened, Xu Youling had difficulty breathing and almost fell to his knees.

"He..." Pei Zhi's voice was rough, his combat uniform was stained with more blood from the struggle just now, but his hands were trembling as he tried his best to point in the direction of Xu Youling.

"I... want him..."

"Pei Zhi! He's a junior guide and hasn't even got his certification!" The examiner's expression changed drastically, his finger half-pinching the trigger of the tranquilizer gun. "He'll die!"

Pei Zhi seemed oblivious to the words, gritting his teeth and staring intently at Xu Youling. He turned his head and spat out a mouthful of blood foam, then wiped it away with his hand. The bloody traces at the corners of his mouth looked like a demon from hell. The German Shepherd roared and lunged at the examiner, its tranquilizer gun knocked away, and it rolled several times on the ground before landing at Xu Youling's feet.

"……mine."

Pei Zhi uttered these two words with difficulty, carrying with them hatred, violence and uncontrollable madness.

Everyone's eyes were focused on Xu Youling, fearing that he would anger this madman again and bring about his own death.

Xu Youling slowly squatted down, picked up the tranquilizer gun with her slender white fingers, and then -

Throw it far away without hesitation.

Pei Zhi watched the beautiful, frail guide approach with almost greed, a melancholy on his pale face, a look of resigned despair. He almost wanted to laugh, for other guides often wore the same expression before helping him, as if they were on their way to a place of no return, forever being dragged into the abyss of the bastard's consciousness.

It's just that this person seems a little different, a little... different.

But the noisy brain no longer has the energy to think, and can only subconsciously desire, expect and need the gentle and inclusive care from the guide.

"mine."

Pulling Xu Youling's white scarf, Pei Zhi repeated it again with a scary smile on his face. The next second, he jumped up from the wreckage of the stretcher and knocked the guide to the ground.